Opinion Today: Topline
Selected links from the December 12, 2025, edition of Opinion Today
Trump’s handling of the economy is at its lowest point in AP-NORC polling Linley Sanders and Will Weissert, Associated Press President Donald Trump’s approval on the economy and immigration have fallen substantially since March, according to a new AP-NORC poll, the latest indication that two signature issues that got him elected barely a year ago could be turning into liabilities as his party begins to gear up for the 2026 midterms.
Trump’s approval rating slips on the economy and immigration AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research
Heading into midterms, Republicans hold edge with older voters, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds Jason Lange and James Oliphant, Reuters
KFF Health Tracking Poll: Health Care Costs in the Current Moment of Economic Anxiety Liz Hamel and Julian Montalvo III, KFF
In Time for the Holidays, Americans Say Costs Are Going up – on Everything Rachael Russell, Ian Smith & Maryann Cousens, Navigator Research
Voters Largely Do Not Support Restricting Speech, Are Concerned About Trump’s NSPM-7 Memo Jenna Scarbrough and Lew Blank, Data for Progress
Survey of Local Elected Officials on Threats and Harassment Bridging Divides Initiative
Tennessee: Economic anxiety surges, transcends party lines Vanderbilt Poll South Carolina: Winthrop Poll Center for Public Opinion & Policy Research, Winthrop University The electorate’s inflation report card: three factors to watch David Winston (Winston Group), Roll Call Trump’s Approval Ratings Are Low Again. This Time It Might Matter. Kristen Soltis Anderson (Echelon Insights), New York Times [unlocked] Why Trump is Doomed to Lose the Affordability Fight Dan Pfeiffer, The Message Box Trump calls affordability crisis a ‘hoax.’ The data tells a different story Joe Hernandez, NPR News Trump Confronts His Political Reality David A. Graham, The Atlantic [unlocked] Indiana Lawmakers Reject Trump’s New Political Map Mitch Smith, New York Times [unlocked] A big question looming over future redistricting: Who should count? Natalia Contreras, Votebeat Texas Democrats Will Test Persuasion Versus Mobilization Strategies in Senate Primary Ed Kilgore, The Democratic Strategist The Democratic base isn’t in the mood to compromise Nate Silver, Silver Bulletin What Miami’s Mayoral Election Says About 2026 Mary Ellen Klas, Bloomberg Opinion [unlocked] Billionaires are spending massive sums on politics. A backlash brews. Naftali Bendavid, Washington Post [unlocked] Thinking Differently About Trust in Government Karlyn Bowman (American Enterprise Institute), The Liberal Patriot AI-generated political videos are more about memes and money than persuading and deceiving Lisa Fazio (Vanderbilt University), The Conversation Polling Accuracy in the 2025 Elections: Virginia, New Jersey, and New York City Spencer Lieb, Leo Johnson, and Celeste Wetmore, Sabato’s Crystal Ball
There’s more in today’s FULL edition of Opinion Today:
PLAYLIST
How Bad Is It?: Three Political Scientists Say America Is No Longer a Democracy
The Political Scene“I Know Nothing About Anything But Politics” with Larry Sabato of UVA’s Center for Politics + Crystal Ball
The Inside Elections Podcast